overgrown for 7 years, how do I tackle this? (Britain)

overgrown for 7 years, how do I tackle this? (Britain)

Sat Aug 11, 2012 1:44 am

Hi everyone, I will start by announcing that I am a newbie on this site and a novice on the gardening department, however here goes....... I have just moved into a bungalow in the countryside with a massive garden that has been neglected for 7 years. It is/was a beautiful mature/ established garden that had a twice weekly gardener and a lovely little old lady tending it. My partner then moved in..... He has been through a messy divorce and built up his new life and unfortunately the garden has suffered.70% of the garden is tree and shrubbery and in the years it has flourished, unfortunately in all of the wrong directions, getting thicker and thicker.

My question and plead for help is: how am I best to tackle this?I have started to trim away at the trees/ bushes with secatures, and this works well, however all of these trees require a minimum of 3feet trimming back and by the time I have got that deep into tree/bush there are no leaves/ buds. Am I killing them or doing the Right thing?

Please please please help, any advise is greatly appreciated as I do not want to kill my beautiful garden, just tame it

Xxxxxx thanks xxxxxxx

Beginner gardener with no knowledge but a love of outdoors and gardening. Finally got my own garden and I need of advise

Very hard to help without knowing more about what kind of trees and bushes you are talking about. Some shrubs can be cut right down to the ground if you want to and will just be rejuvenated by it and some would be killed that way.

Pictures would really help. Instructions for posting pictures here are in New to Helpful Gardener? under Helpful Tips and Suggestions for New Members.

As rainbowgardener said, ID'ing all the plants should be the first step.

Then, I would start by removing any weeds, including tree and shrub seedling and saplings that are not growing where they are supposed to be.

Some trees/shrubs need to be pruned immediately after blooms are finished, some need to be pruned while in green growth, but most are best pruned while dormant in early or late winter, especially when making severe cuts.

General rule of thumb is to cut no more than 1/3 of the entire plant. You could cut up to 1/3 of the length/height or cut up to 1/3 of the number of multi-trunked shoots from the base (this is done with shrubs like lilacs or roses to rejuvenate, cutting away older tired limbs to encourage fresh new shoots to grow). 1/3 being on the extreme side and maybe 1/4 being less stressful to the plants. Plants needing intensive pruning will have to be shaped over several years.

In fall, the sugars/energy of the plants are transferred to the roots for the winter. This acts as anti-freeze and will be their reserve for leafing out and blooming in spring. You don't want to set them back by removing healthy growth and foliage UNLESS it is intentionally done to slow their growth.

When pruned while dormant, the energy reserves in the roots are now distributed among the remaining limbs and buds of the plant after pruning, and the plant will usually show vigorous growth in spring.

It's important to note, too, that pruning cuts need to be made correctly with the individual plant's growth patterns in mind. In some cases, the pruning tools should be sterilized between each cut and/or protective material should be applied on the cut surfaces to prevent infection, and some diseases are more active during certain times of the year and pruning susceptible trees/shrubs should be avoided during those periods.

Thankyou so much for your replies. Wow theres alot more to this than I thought. Fortunately the stuff that i have pruned back so far has been horrible thorny nastiness that I wouldn't desperatly mind losing What would be the best way to ID them? I have so much........ I think it might take forever to pic each individual. Would a gardener be able to ID them? E.g. If I book a slot with a gardener to come and walk around my garden with me, telling me what they are and need?

Thanks again

Beginner gardener with no knowledge but a love of outdoors and gardening. Finally got my own garden and I need of advise

Littlelinzi89 wrote:Thankyou so much for your replies. Wow theres alot more to this than I thought. Fortunately the stuff that i have pruned back so far has been horrible thorny nastiness that I wouldn't desperatly mind losing What would be the best way to ID them? I have so much........ I think it might take forever to pic each individual. Would a gardener be able to ID them? E.g. If I book a slot with a gardener to come and walk around my garden with me, telling me what they are and need?

Thanks again

Hi Linzi...You say that you are in a village. Get hold of the local village magazine and look for the phone number of the local horticultural group. ( Gardening Club)Every village has one and they would be only too happy to give you the advice you seek in identifying the shrubs and trees.